One year after the fall of the Jedi:

~Anakin's POV~

When he arrived home, it was into the usual hustle and bustle that came with being a general for the very small army of the Rebel Alliance.

The air was hot with hurried breaths and the atmosphere was a blur of white clone armor. Every inch of the floor, stairs and every room was filled with volunteers, clones, weapons, spies, ambassadors and businesspersons.

Anakin Skywalker chuckled and crossed his arms. It felt so good to be home, after three months, he had missed this.

"Well," a familiar and welcome voice came. "Look whose back. Good to see you, Skywalker," Anakin grinned at his trusted comrade, Captain Rex. It had been a year since the fall of the Republic/Jedi and the rise of the Sith/Galactic Empire.

In that time, much had happened, including the continuous appearance of his second in command. Rex had taken to being around him and his family so much that he had dropped the General part of the equation and taken to plain calling him Skywalker.

"Hay, Rex," he replied as they shook hands warmly. "Good to see you. Where is everyone?" He asked. "Padme is up in the library with Chancellor Organa and the twins," he began.

Another thing that had changed was the Rebel Council had elected Senator Bail Organa to be their chancellor. He called on Padme often for advice since she had once been queen.

"Nava and Intrepid left on a mission about a week ago. Ahsoka is in the conference room with a few of her spies and Admiral Ackbar," he smiled ruefully, that meant Lux Bonteri was here.

"And Obi-wan is in the other conference room with Cody, negotiating with some business men again," he rolled his eyes pointedly. "Personally, I think those guys needs a good blaster bolt in the skull, but you know Obi-wan and Cody," he said with a shrug.

Anakin chuckled, one of those, huh? Yes, well, if Rex said they needed a blaster bolt in the head then they needed a saber too. But ever peace-loving, life -respecting Obi-wan and Cody did not see it that way. He couldn't wait to see them again.

"Good. I'll see you later, Rex," he said. Rex nodded and hurried back into the loud bustle of people. Anakin smiled and turned left, where a winding staircase led to the library, he had a wife to go see.

The twenty-five year old knight used the force to jump from the ground and landed on the top of the staircase. From there, he walked into the library, an act he rarely did.

For some reason, his family had built a giant library stocked full of books into the home. Probably for Padme, considering the fact that Obi-wan and Ahsoka knew all too well how much he loathed reading.

Inside the hundreds of shelves of books sat a table, in which Bail and Padme sat. His two twins, now one-year-old toddlers sat on the floor. Leia had a picture book in her hands, staring at them happily while Luke tinkered with a small machine Anakin had built for him.

He smiled as he leaned in the doorway, just taking in the sight of his family. It had been an eternity since he had seen them all last, an eternity that had nearly killed him with longing. "We need those extra ships," Bail was saying firmly. There were bags of sleeplessness under his eyes.

"I agree," his wife, Padme Amidala said. "Don't worry. Obi-wan is working on the businessmen downstairs right now. And Master Shaak Ti already captured an Imperial base, so we have extra ships for our spies," she said.

He nodded. "Good, and have the spies gathered any more useful information?" he asked. "Ahsoka is debriefing them now," Padme reported. Bail smiled feebly and looked up; he rubbed the back of his neck tiredly.

"Your little family here are my main helpers, Padme. Thank you. I have no clue what I'd do without your help," he said. Anakin couldn't stay hidden any longer.

"It's all in a day's work, Chancellor," he gloated casually, striding in with his usual swagger. Padme's head snapped up, and a grin of pure happiness lit her delicate features. He felt his heart soar at the sight of her. His Padme. Luke and Leia also looked up, and smiled with childish glee.

"Fatha!" They squealed in unison. He laughed, unable not too. His love for his children was as extreme as his love for Padme, sometimes, when he thought of it, he felt an ache in his chest filled with love, and a secret dread of having to leave again.

"Anakin! Your home!" Padme said, standing. He walked up, having been in misery when away from her. They hugged, and Anakin felt himself let out a deep breath, it was so good to be home.

"Fatha!" Leia whined, pushing in between the hugging couple. Anakin laughed and looked down at his daughter; she had adopted some of Ahsoka's impoliteness; that was for sure. He could not wait to see Ahsoka all the more.

"Luke! Leia! Were you good for your mother?" He asked, using the force to pick both up. They screeched in giggles. "I was!" Luke announced proudly. Leia, who by no means really cared, only kept laughing as she was levitated in the air.

"General Skywalker," Bail said, standing from his seat.

"It's good to see you. How was your mission?" He asked. Anakin inclined his head in a tiny bow of respect. "It went well, Chancellor. Thanks for asking. How've you been holding up?" he asked devilishly. Bail sighed.

"I haven't, I've been muddling through," two years, and he was still muddling through. Anakin laughed and put a compassionate hand on his shoulder. "We all muddle through, Bail, don't worry about it," he assured him.

Bail smiled and nodded. "Thank you. Well, I'm off. I have another eighteen meetings today," he said. Padme nodded and put a hand on his arm comfortingly. "I'll contact you about those ships and the spies when I get an update," she said. He gave her one last grateful glance before waving at Luke and Leia, giving Anakin a tired smile and departing.

Anakin turned to Padme. "How have things been around here?" He asked. Padme smiled and plucked one of their children from the air. "Good. Everyone has been in and out as usual. New ships have arrived, new information. Oh, and Luke and Leia are lifting spoons and things with the force. Ahsoka said that that is normal for their age," she said.

Anakin grinned proudly. "It is," he agreed. He levitated Luke into his hands. "Have you been using your force powers, my son?" He asked. Luke only gurgled happily. Anakin grinned and turned to his wife. "How may meetings do you have today?" He asked. Padme smiled at him sheepishly.

"Eight," she replied. "I thought so. Well, let me get out of your way then, do you want me to take the kids?" he asked. Padme shook her head, to his disappointment, and sat down, still holding her children, who awed and played with her long brown locks.

Anakin smiled, he loved playing with her hair too.

"Don't worry about us, Anakin, I've got it. You go get some rest," she ordered. He laughed. "Yes, I will; my wife," he moved towards the door. "After I see Ahsoka and Obi-wan," he added, hurriedly running out before Padme could protest.

Chuckling, he ran to the conference room, the place of most meetings held in the house concerning spies. There were thousands, of course. All volunteers, some having been Separatists, and some having been bounty hunters. It didn't matter who or what they had been before. They were rebels now.

Anakin stopped at the door of the conference room, which was expectantly closed. How many spies were there? Ah, ten.

Can I come in? He called through his and Ahsoka's bond. He felt her flash of delight at his reappearance. You might as well, eavesdropping isn't very polite either, Ahsoka replied. He grinned, she knew him too well.

Opening the door, Anakin walked into the dim room. The ten spies inside snapped up to look at him, eyes both bright and stony with the life of someone who constantly took risks. Despite the peril Anakin was in everyday, he could never want any life other than the one of a Jedi.

He smiled at them, and a combined mumble of greeting arose. Ahsoka was in the middle of the room, next to the holo-projector speaking with Admiral Ackbar and Lux Bonteri.

"Master!" His eighteen-year-old apprentice called with a bright grin; as if his striding in were a complete surprise. He smiled; thrilled to see the girl he viewed as a daughter, he had missed her company.

"Hay, Snips," he greeted. He walked up to the three as the other spies continued with their conversations. "All done here?" he asked. Ahsoka nodded.

"Yes, I just transmitted the newest information to Master Yoda, we were finishing up" he had to smile at the name of the leader of the Jedi. Or, the twenty-seven Jedi still alive. He was a good little midget, nevertheless.

Anakin cast a glance at Lux Bonteri, who was the same age as his apprentice. To both Padme and Obi-wan's surprise and Ahsoka's exasperation, he found his interest in Ahsoka amusing.

Being a spy, Lux was around often, meaning he and Ahsoka, who were close friends anyway, got to see each other much more often than Anakin and Padme had at first. That worried him sometimes.

Loving a Jedi was hard and dangerous work; and Ahsoka was just so young, too young to have her heart broken. And if Lux did break it then Anakin would be obligated to kill him. And he really had better things to do.

He would worry less if, perhaps, Lux did not have a caring, handsome face or the endearing dark brown eyes, glossy chocolate hair and a muscular body. Yep, he would worry a lot less if he was ugly, and if he didn't so obviously have a crush on his padawan and she hopelessly oblivious to this.

"How was your mission?" Ahsoka asked. Anakin crossed his arms. "Successful. I was invited to have a private meeting with Count Dooku," he announced, a twinkle in his eye.

Ahsoka smirked and put her hands on her hips. "Let me guess, you blew up his ship?" She asked with the same reckless sparkle in her eyes as he had. He felt a bit of pride blossom in his heart, he had taught her all about that spark of impulsiveness.

Anakin feigned deep hurt at her assumption. "What? Of course not, Snips. I had our ships shoot his out of the sky," he snorted.

"Blow it up, no; you know I only do that when Obi-wan is there. He hates the 'complete lack of subtlety', as you well know," he said. Ahsoka laughed and Ackbar chuckled. "That's true," Ahsoka agreed. "I wish Intrepid and Nava were here, we could all be together tonight," she said.

Anakin sighed, though the house was one of the biggest bases of the Rebel Alliance (or, rather, the actual base was a few miles away from the house), the spies, businessmen, and other intruders left at night, leaving their little family alone.

All being in one place at the same time was rare, however, due to the constant stream of missions the Jedi had to complete against the Galactic Empire. When it did happen, the moments were treasured.

"Me too," he agreed with a sigh. "But there's nothing we can do. By the way, how long have Luke and Leia been lifting things with the force?" he asked. "About three weeks," Anakin resisted the urge to cringe, three weeks; he had missed out on three weeks of his children's growth.

"Don't worry," Ahsoka said, seeing his face fall. "I got the first time on holo-tape," and yet he had a padawan who did things like that. It still was not the same, but it was something.

He nodded. Now that he had seen to Ahsoka, he had one more person to visit. Obi-wan. "Well, I'm off. I can't stay in one place for too long, in case Padme come looking for me and tries to talk me into lying down," he said. Ahsoka opened her mouth, about to agree with Padme. Anakin ran out before she could.

Chuckling, he made his way back down the crowded staircase cheerfully. Three months without seeing the man he reviewed as an older brother had been rougher than he thought. Even though Obi-wan drove him insane, it was still odd going anywhere without him for an extended amount of time. They were a team.

Maneuvering himself through the huge house, Anakin found the diplomat's room, Obi-wan and Padme's domain mostly. Anakin rarely ever went inside, almost as little as he walked into the library.

He stopped outside of the door, he could sense Obi-wan in his usual spot, sitting in his chair across the small desk with Cody standing behind him like a bodyguard, blaster in its holster.

Why Cody stood there was beyond Anakin, force knew Obi-wan could handle himself perfectly fine, but Obi-wan had said something about a professional air and intimidation and other long, complicated words Anakin had quickly interrupted him to go on about something else for.

The door opened before he could knock. A short, stocky Rodian stomped out of the room, infuriated and followed by likewise infuriated minion Rodian's. "The insolence!" he roared.

Looks like you've gone and done it again, Negotiator, Anakin thought, watching him go. "Who does he believe he is, to speak to me in such a way? I have never been so insulted! The self-centered, pompous, vulgar Jedi scum!" he cried.

Anakin scowled, realizing what Rex had meant, this guy really needed a blaster bolt in the brain if he was calling Obi-wan Kenobi self-centered, pompous or vulgar. Only an idiot would say as such.

Obi-wan was a lot of things, like indifferent, aggravating, stubborn and stern, but that was just his nature. He still was none of those things. Jedi scum perhaps….

He walked in. Obi-wan was sitting at his desk in the small room, looking downright pleased with himself. Cody stood behind him at attention, but some of his soldier like stiffness had vanished, making him chuckle softly. "As usual, you have exceeded yourself, General," unlike Rex, Cody still called them by their official names.

"Thank you, Cody," Obi-wan said cheerfully. "You played your part nicely, as well. I only hope my strategy works," he said. "It always does," Cody reminded him. "What'd you say to the nice man, Obi-wan? Did you insult his mother or something? It looked like she would have been a Gundark," Anakin asked from the doorway. Obi-wan and Cody looked up.

"Anakin, it's good to see you," Obi-wan said with a grin, Cody only nodded cordially. His more open moods were reserved for Rex and Obi-wan. "And no, I did not. I was merely a bit more…. Blunt, than usual," he explained.

Cody snorted in disagreement. Obi-wan cast him an impish glance to silence him.

"Anyway, how long have you been home?" Obi-wan asked, he waved Cody off, and the clone trotted out- probably to find Rex- and closed the door behind him. Anakin sat in the seat across from Obi-wan.

"A couple minutes. I've already seen the others," he said. Obi-wan nodded. "What about you? How long have you been here?" Anakin asked. Obi-wan sighed. "Four days. Nothing much has been happening in that time," he said.

"Besides you insulting businesspeople?"Anakin asked. Obi-wan grinned feebly. "All in a day's work, my old padawan," he said optimistically.

"What was even the goal?" Anakin asked, knowing the only way Obi-wan would purposefully insult someone was if there was a good motive involved. "I've caught his interest," Obi-wan said merely.

Anakin sighed; it was no use trying to get more from him. He put his chin in his hands. "The rebel fleet has been terrorizing the Empire over Ilum. The Sith are trying to destroy the lightsaber crystals growing there," he said. Obi-wan scowled, stroking his beard.

"I see. They are trying to make sure the future Jedi have no weapons," of course, he would figure it out before Anakin said anything and point it out as if Anakin didn't already know. He nodded.

"Our history is also stored there, or, what's left of it," they were silent for a moment, thinking of the Jedi Temple, and the babies and younglings inside.

All had been murdered by The Sith as their home and history burned. Many Jedi had taken to the galaxy, finding force-sensitive children and training them. The Jedi Order was going to continue.

"Have they found the cave yet?" Obi-wan asked. Anakin shrugged. "I never found out," he said. "Ahsoka might know, from her spies. I doubt they'll find the cave. It's at the top of the mountain, if you remember," Obi-wan pointed out. Anakin nodded, how could he forget?

"And besides, the council is already in making of a plan," Anakin cocked an eyebrow. The council came up with hundreds of plans a day, what was Obi-wan getting at? "A plan for what? An end to this war?" Or rebellion, as the Empire called it.

"Perhaps. I'm sure you recall our mission to save Master Piell and recover the Nexus Route?" Anakin's mind flashed through the adventure. Oh, yes, the time when Ahsoka had disobeyed him, snuck aboard the ship and ended up being the most important part of the mission? Yah, he remembered.

"Of course, what about it?" He asked. "Well, we believe that if we had the coordinates to that route, we could plan a surprise attack on the Empire, on Courascant," he said. Anakin blinked.

"I doubt they'll be expecting it, but isn't Courascant heavily guarded?" he asked. "With all of our ships in battle, they'd be out-numbered," Anakin pursed his lips, thinking. "It's risky," he contemplated.

"That's why we hesitate. Never the matter, it was only an idea. Nonetheless, we have sent out for Captain Tarkin to be found, we don't want Sidious getting his hands on that information either," Obi-wan said. Anakin's jaw clenched at the name of the man he had once trusted. The man who had betrayed him.

Suddenly, Obi-wan cocked his head as if he heard something. "Almost sundown," how he always knew what time it happened to be, was beyond Anakin. Sometimes, he wondered how much he truly knew about his best friend.

He shook his head; it was almost family time. The force suddenly let out a wave of liveliness and Pride. Anakin grinned; Nava and Intrepid were home. The family was back together again.

He saw a small smile curl Obi-wan's mouth. "We should not keep them waiting," he nodded and the two ventured out into the house.

Chapter one is up in honor of Veteran's day. My prayers go out to all of the military and their families. May God bless you! All the same, this is chapter one of the : you have to pay mega attention to th eplot, it goes everywhere! And yes, Starkiller will be in this one. Ahsoka is also getting married to a Sith...

~Queen Yoda